Gabon police charge at protesters, beat AFP cameraman

Security forces in Gabon violently charged at demonstrators gathering in Libreville in the lead-up to presidential elections and beat an AFP cameraman covering the protest, a colleague said. Defying a heavy police presence, hundreds of protesters took to the streets in opposition to President Ali Bongo Ondimba’s candidacy for re-election on August 26, the AFP correspondent said. Some 15 opposition leaders also attended the protest, forming a human chain at the front of the crowd.